An ongoing discussion of topics covered by The Other Pages collections.

November 27, 2007

Keeping the Universe Up-to-date

Yes, blink an eye and another month dissappears without a trace, aside from some left over turkey soup in the back corner of the fridge.

One of the most-neglected collections, Universe has been updated, with a few added works, an author-based index, and cleaner scripting. I've maintained the same color scheme and for some odd reason migrated to even more visually obnoxious graphics. Sorry.

The idea behind this particular collection was that, once upon a time, a LOT of readers began sending in their own poems, wanting them to be listed in the Poets' Corner collection somewhere between Byron and Browning. While there is a great deal of good poetry out there - and much of it very readable, it is also very thrue that the vast majority of poems hold a very uniquely personal value that does not translate well for a wider audience. It is also true that the mechanics of poetry are not widely taught nowadays, and mechanical flaws can detract from even the best of works.

But there is some good stuff, and it was a shame not to have a home for it. The title, while grand-sounding, is actually a poor play on words (either verse in Unicode or single-minded poetry, if you prefer).

Congratulations, by the way to contributor Robin Berard, whose first book not only made both Sunshine State reading lists, but also came out this summer in a mass-market paperback edition.

Here's one for our current election campaign season:

Campaign Promise

I promise to eliminate poverty raise the peasant to rich peasant so that he may suffer with us the burden our happiness and the pain of our understanding God willing, we shall have the hill without the valley and the river will become an ocean and contrast will be a thing of the past-